Shares of video and pixel processing company Pixelworks have climbed over 40 percent after the company revealed a strategic relationship with Apple that contributed significantly to the company's revenue in 2013 (Via SeekingAlpha).

Pixelworks confirmed in a recent Form 10-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that Apple, along with Hitachi and NEC, each accounted for more than 10 percent of the company's revenue in 2013.

Quote:

Revenue attributable to our top five end customers represented 57%, 53% and 51% of revenue in 2013, 2012 and 2011, respectively. End customers include customers who purchase directly from us as well as customers who purchase products indirectly through distributors. Sales to Hitachi Ltd. represented more than 10% of revenue in each of 2013, 2012 and 2011. Sales to each of Apple Inc. and NEC Corporation represented more than 10% of revenue in 2013. Sales to Panasonic Corporation represented more than 10% of revenue in each of 2012 and 2011. Sales to Seiko Epson Corporation represented more than 10% of revenue in 2011. No other end customer accounted for more than 10% of revenue in 2013, 2012 or 2011.

It's not clear what Pixelworks is providing to Apple, but it likely involves Apple's high-resolution retina displays, which are noted in the company's 10-K filing.

Quote:

Recent advancements in display manufacturing technology have allowed display manufacturers to pack an increasing number of pixels into tighter spaces. This transition was led by the mobile segment, and in particular by Apple's "Retina" display, which set the standard for smaller screens. The resolution on display devices in all segments is increasing.

Pixelworks is known for its video display processing technology and holds over 120 patents that cover the display and processing of digital image data. The company provides display technology for digital projection systems, flat panel displays and mobile displays.

After reading about their technologies and knowing what GPU IP they're using, it sounds like they're likely investigating framebuffer techniques to minimize display updating (in addition to advanced compression techniques afforded to ImgTec GPUs and reduce any artifacts that are resultant from that to the user) in order to minimize display power consumption. There has been a lot of effort by other companies to reduce power consumption by having things like GRAM where the display has its own local storage to redisplay the same frame buffer rather than have the GPU burn electrons to output the same image over again.

Our proprietary Halo Free MEMC technology significantly improves the performance and viewing experience of any screen by addressing problems such as judder and motion blur. Unlike competitive solutions it also reduces halo effects that are a byproduct of MEMC. Halos are objectionable blurred regions that surround moving objects as the MEMC algorithms try to reconstruct missing image data caused by the concealing and revealing of objects as they pass over or behind one another. Removing halos drastically improves image quality and is of particular importance on high-resolution displays where artifacts become more visible.

Advanced Scaling.

As display resolutions continue to increase there is a need to convert lower resolution content to higher resolution in order to display it properly. With the latest wave of high-resolution displays, the quality and quantity demands of scaling have increased significantly. Artifacts become more noticeable on these types of displays as they distract from the realism effect. In addition, with the availability of 4K content lagging the availability of 4K displays, high-quality scaling is required to ensure 4K displays do not suffer when compared to Full-HD displays of the same size. Pixelworks advanced scaling ensures that up-conversion of lower resolution content is of the highest quality in maintaining the fidelity of image.

Mobile Video Display Processing.

Pixelworks has developed innovative, power optimized Video Display Processing solutions for mobile devices. Beyond MEMC and Advanced Scaling, these mobile solutions provide the kind of improvements in color, contrast, sharpness and de-blur that are only found in high quality televisions today. Furthermore, this technology can save system power and extend battery life.

VueMagic and Networked Displays.

With the advent of mobile devices being used in business, educational and consumer environments there is a growing need to connect to displays wireless for sharing and collaboration. VueMagic uses our networking technology to enable the same video stream to be networked across multiple displays for applications such as connected video projection and digital signage. VueMagic provides interactive features for annotation and display control, and unlike other solutions, is device and operating system independent.

And on 3/08/2014 (in the US we reverse the month and day, so my date is just 1 day after yours), Samsung signs an agreement with Pixelworks

Also, nah.

On 8-Mar, Samsung special forces infiltrate the building in the middle of the night and take pictures of all the schematics, ironically using an iPhone 5S since the low light capabilities are so good.

On 10-Mar, Samsung starts churning out displays at 100,000 per day and undercuts Pixelworks price by 40%. Samsung claims "Revolutionary superior display by Samsung, Pixelworks screens are too small and stupid. Next best thing is 40% cheaper."

21-Mar, Pixelworks goes out of business.
22-Mar, Samsung raises price by 40%
23-Mar, Samsung CEO celebrates at his bachelor pad questionable young Korean girls in even more questionable attire. "God it feels good to be a gangster," he says with Cigar in his mouth...a copy of a Cuban cigar recipe, on the label in a blue oval is says "Samsmoke SX+ Ultra-High-Definition 2.3 Pro...Mini"

On 8-Mar, Samsung special forces infiltrate the building in the middle of the night and take pictures of all the schematics, ironically using an iPhone 5S since the low light capabilities are so good.

On 10-Mar, Samsung starts churning out displays at 100,000 per day and undercuts Pixelworks price by 40%. Samsung claims "Revolutionary superior display by Samsung, Pixelworks screens are too small and stupid. Next best thing is 40% cheaper."

21-Mar, Pixelworks goes out of business.
22-Mar, Samsung raises price by 40%
23-Mar, Samsung CEO celebrates at his bachelor pad questionable young Korean girls in even more questionable attire. "God it feels good to be a gangster," he says with Cigar in his mouth...a copy of a Cuban cigar recipe, on the label in a blue oval is says "Samsmoke SX+ Ultra-High-Definition 2.3 Pro...Mini"

Clearly trying to appeal to me through the use of the Cuban Cigar reference. Very Good! I like it!

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